


at dawn we linger

by peachgyus



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: 25 Lives, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-19 15:59:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22713340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peachgyus/pseuds/peachgyus
Summary: a valentine's gyuhao drabble from one of the many shared lifetimes of mingyu and minghao.
Relationships: Kim Mingyu/Xu Ming Hao | The8
Comments: 5
Kudos: 20





	at dawn we linger

**Author's Note:**

> hi guys! happy valentine's day! this drabble has been sitting in my drafts for a while and i thought i should finally release it.  
> for those who are unfamiliar with retrouville, you can read retrouville here (https://archiveofourown.org/works/15888573). you technically don't need to read it before reading this one but things make more sense once you do.
> 
> also idk what happened here honestly wee woo wee woo i'm off to eat dinner
> 
> p.s unbeta'ed and messy wiw

there is a longing that pierces through your bones, the ache strong enough to swallow you whole. mingyu knows this all too well, but in this lifetime at least – at least – he shares a small little piece of forever with minghao.

they neither kill each other nor have to part from each other, and for the first time after five lifetimes, mingyu gets to watch from his little corner of their queen size bed how minghao sleeps.

minghao is a messy sleeper. he flings his long arms and limbs everywhere, hitting mingyu’s face or putting weight on his throat, causing him to wake up from lack of air. but minghao sleeps heavily, his dreams stealing his consciousness away from mingyu for a few hours. he does not mind it, however, feeling a sense of peacefulness that the luxury of having a normal lifetime can provide in these quiet moments.

when minghao awakens, he first scrunches his nose. mingyu pokes the tip of it, unable to resist, and his hand is quickly swatted away. there’s not a fiber in mingyu’s body that can feel any anger, instead he watches as minghao hides his face against the pillow again and drifts off for a few more moments.

mingyu is patient. he had to learn to be patient. so he waits until the alarm rings again and minghao is forced to wake up.

maybe he’ll be granted with a smile if he makes breakfast. the thought makes him giddy and he slowly pushes himself off of the bed, the mattress lightly creaking from his actions.

once his feet are against the wooden floor, he makes sure to pad slowly outside of the room and close the door behind him. what welcomes him are articles of clothing scattered on the floor. minghao was too tired to put them in the dirty clothes bin, expecting mingyu to pick them up.

instead, mingyu picks the lanky boy up in his arms and they spend the night making love to each other and skipping dinner in the process.

quietly, mingyu picks up their clothes. he puts on his boxers and slides on his shirt that he picked up from the dining chair. minghao’s clothes are folded neatly before being dumped in the dirty clothes bin. he remembers minghao making a fuss about this, telling him that dirty clothes didn’t need to be sorted and folded when thrown in the bin. countering that, mingyu explained that if he followed the other’s instructions, then most of his expensive clothes would be tattered and ruined. he has not heard a word since then.

the taller male makes sure to clean before proceeding to cook, wanting their small apartment to look cozy and nice once minghao wakes up. although minghao doesn’t tell mingyu, he knows that he appreciates mingyu’s cleanliness. 

as someone who remembers, mingyu makes small mistakes.

“one strawberry smoothie, please,” minghao says politely to the waitress.

mingyu squints and closes the menu, putting it down against the table. “we’ll be having one banana smoothie and a mango smoothie instead.”

hearing the orders, minghao shoots a questioning look at mingyu. “i wanted the strawberry one.”

mingyu smiles, reaching for minghao’s hand across the table and interlaces their fingers together. the other continues to stare at him, waiting for his answer. “but you’re allergic to strawberries, babe.”

by this time, the waitress had taken the menus from the table and made a quick exit, not wanting to see the two quarrel.

“i’m not?” minghao responds, slowly sliding his hand away from mingyu. “since when was I allergic to anything?” minghao’s expression changes into one of hurt and suspicion.

it’s then that mingyu realizes.

the panic in his face is severe and it startles minghao. it’s like mingyu had committed a grave sin, something that he should repent for for the rest of his life.

the apology that spill from the taller’s lips is sincere but also carries a tone that minghao rarely hears mingyu speak in. it makes his chest ache to hear it and see mingyu so sorry for something so simple. although this is something that has been bothering minghao for a while, he excuses it this time around again. he then takes the taller boy’s hand in his again, squeezing it gently with a comforting smile.

“i don’t mind bananas.”

it’s their one anniversary and mingyu feels as if he’s ruined the day for them. he failed to book a table at the restaurant minghao’s been wanting to go to for months so everything about today already sucked.

he has to make up for it. 

it's valentine's day a week after. 

mingyu is waiting for minghao to finish preparing before they go out on a date. this time, he makes sure to book in advance and even got a table by the window where they can admire the skyscrapers and city lights outside. he's clad in his best formal wear, something he had only worn once before and that was the celebration of his parents' wedding. they renewed their vows that day and mingyu dreams momentarily of him and minghao renewing their vows like that, holding the other's wrinkly hand and seeing the same kind of love that they built since the first lifetime they spent together.

he would be lying if he said he wasn't envious of having a mortal life.

once the gate opens, mingyu turns around, running a sweaty hand over his shirt to make sure the folds were still nice and looked up to see minghao. he looked effortlessly beautiful but knowing how much time and thought minghao put into anything, mingyu knows that this minghao in burgundy slacks, matching oversize coat and simple white t-shirt took time to be completed.

mingyu feels his heart soar.

unable to hold himself back, he quickly walks towards the other and wraps his arms around him, not caring about the protests that followed suit. all he wants is to hold minghao in his arms. maybe they shouldn't go to the restaurant. he could just admire minghao standing looking all dapper and handsome. 

"can you stop, people are staring?" minghao finally says, pushing mingyu's arms off of him with a displeased huff.

a laugh bubbles in his throat, reaching out for minghao's hand that he finds even without looking for it, intertwining their fingers together. 

"let's go!"

in this lifetime, he's a normal office worker who doesn't get paid much but he's too tired so he simply wastes most of his days away in a call center. because of this, he doesn't have enough funds to actually buy a car even though he and minghao had already been eyeing a pretty decent secondhand model their friend is selling. so today, he surprises minghao by showing up in a (rented) sports car fitting of their somewhat classy date. minghao's appreciative eyebrow raise is the only reaction he got but judging by the way minghao's eyes couldn't stop sparkling as he studied the inside of the car, he knows the other is very pleased.

"you can't be serious."

minghao's face is doing that thing when he's trying not to cause a scene in public from excitement. he's seen it a couple of times already and he can't help but laugh as he gestures even more dramatically at the table.

he had set it up with small bundles of roses and glass beads that looked like water droplets a few hours ago. he had to make sure everything was perfect and specifically asked the manager himself to allow him to reserve the table for the whole day for days. it wasn't until the manager's daughter, a friend of mingyu's from college arrived, that he had been allowed to keep it. in return for their kindness, mingyu told them that the two of them will live long lives together as father and daughter. he knows since he's seen them around a couple of times already.

beside the table, the easel he had insisted be part of the display stands. it's a painting he made with minghao, actually. somehow, the two never got to finishing it. mostly because they were either bored, having sex (the rough patches of paint can attest) or simply not inspired. he made it his mission to finish the abstract painting that they could only decipher today. just in time for their date he had painstakingly planned.

mingyu might fail three times out of five but he makes sure that the fifth try is perfect.

once minghao is seated, he takes out his camera and starts taking pictures which makes mingyu laugh. the waiter pours the red wine on each of their bottles, informing them that their three course meal is about to be served.

nodding, mingyu lifts his glass up in a toast which minghao returns once he sets his camera down, grinning from ear to ear.

 _ah, that's the smile i fall in love with over and over again_ , he thinks.

"what are we toasting to this time?" asks.

mingyu hums in thought, leaning closer as he meets the eyes of the love of his life. "forever."

the glasses clink as they toast and mingyu sits back, closing his eyes to savor the richness of the age old wine.

when he opens his eyes, his eyes widen as warm liquid spills down the corner of his lips. he registers minghao's shock, standing up and heading towards him immediately to catch his body that falls to the side. he registers a wetness spreading from his abdomen and he looks down, hand shakily searching for the source and sees blood as red as wine. 

he coughs up more blood, now clutching onto minghao for dear life. he doesn't hear anything and could barely focus on the colors and shadows in front of him. he could only focus on minghao's face, the pain he could see in his eyes and he smiles.

"see you," he whispers, words barely distinguishable between a choke and a gasp for air.

 _we'll see each other again, don't worry_.


End file.
